2012 Faustine Rose

Abbatucci’s Sciacarellu-based 2012 Ajaccio Rose Faustine delivers a lusher, less citric and more sweetly-ripe impression than have previous vintages I’ve experienced, with thyme, mint and rose hip accenting luscious strawberry. Rich in texture, it nonetheless remains consummately refreshing, and a streak of salinity serves for saliva-inducement in a lingering finish. This doesn’t demonstrate the captivating and dynamic complexity found in the very best Corsican roses – notably including some past renditions of Faustine – but should remain distinctively and infectiously delicious through spring of 2014. I hope that a substantial share of those reading these lines will by now have had an opportunity to taste at least one wine of Jean-Charles Abbatucci, about whose amazing work I have written on several occasions in this venue, including extensively in my issue 205 report. So I’ll spare you more tales at this time and get right to the wines, of which this summer I was finally able to taste an entire line-up. To verify vintages on the numerous Abbatucci wines that are not of appellation Ajaccio and formally non-vintage, consult the first two digits that appear in tiny print on the back label immediately after the capital “L.” (In the event that such a “lot number” cannot be located – which applies to any non-AOC Abbatucci wines prior to the 2011 harvest – you are at the mercy of your retail or restaurant source, although “Cuvee Collection” wines from before that date do display vintages on their corks.) Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524